Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

TORONTO Toronto Mayor rob Ford hqas been ordered out of office.
Justice Charles Hackland’s ruled that Ford must step down after finding against him guilty on conflict of interest.
The possibilities are a legal Rubik’s Cube that has City Hall watchers wondering who, by lunchtime, will be leading Canada’s largest city.
“There’s never been a brouhaha of this magnitude in a major Canadian city,” said John Mascarin, an expert on municipal law at Aird & Berlis LLP, who is watching the Ford case closely but is not directly involved.
The simplest scenario is that Hackland rules Ford did not contravene the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act when he voted at council to absolve himself of the need to repay $3,150 to lobbyists from whom he had improperly solicited donations for his private football foundation.
Ford would remain mayor and, Mascarin said, the Toronto resident who brought the complaint would have no right of appeal.
Much trickier would be a finding that Ford did breach the act.
Hackland could simply scold the mayor, with no real penalty, if he finds the breach was inadvertent or an error of judgment, or if the sum involved is deemed insignificant.
If those loopholes don’t apply, however, provincial law decrees the judge must order the mayor’s seat vacated. He could also ban Ford from running for re-election for up to seven years.
Judges have removed mayors of smaller municipalities, Mascarin said, but are understood to be loath to oust a democratically elected official.
Based on what he saw at Ford’s hearing, Mascarin believes Ford is guilty and the exceptions do not apply to him.
“Hackland is a very strong-minded judge. He does not shrink from tough decisions,” Mascarin said. “I’m finding it difficult to see how the judge lets him off the hook, but we won’t know until we see the judgment.”
If Hackland orders the mayor removed, it is almost certain his lawyer, Alan Lenczner, will immediately launch an appeal with the Divisional Court and ask it to stay Ford’s eviction from office until after the appeal is concluded.
That could see Ford stay in office for months or a year, or more, albeit with a cloud over his head. The next civic election is in October 2014.
If Ford’s ejection was not quickly put on hold, city council would have to get on with the business of deciding who’s the boss. Initially, it would be Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday, who would have all the mayoral powers except membership on community councils.
Council would then have to officially declare the seat vacant at an emergency meeting called with 24 hours’ notice. There is a regularly scheduled council meeting with a full agenda Tuesday and Wednesday and launch of the city’s 2013 budget process on Thursday.
Midway through Ford’s four-year term, councillors would have the discretion to either appoint one of their own as a caretaker mayor, by majority vote, or trigger a citywide mayoral byelection that would cost $7 million.
Holyday, a staunch fiscal conservative, said he would rather spend the money than risk a nonconservative being chosen by council to undo Ford’s agenda of cost-cutting, contracting out and bringing city unions to heel.
Ford’s staff have been privately telling allies that, if their boss is forced out, the plan is have Holyday step in with a firm hand on the tiller, at least until the city elections office can organize a byelection.
Another Ford ally, Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong (Ward 34, Don Valley East), said, “In the eventuality that council is faced with the decision of selecting a new mayor, I’m of the view that, if there are more than two years left in the mandate, council should go to the people and ask them.”
Glenn De Baeremaeker, a centre-left councillor often at odds with Ford, said the mayor’s opponents are not planning “a palace coup.”
If council appoints a caretaker mayor, Holyday is the logical choice, said De Baeremaeker (Ward 38, Scarborough Centre).
“If we don’t have a mayor as of Monday afternoon, we’ll have to let the dust settle and see what happens,” he said. “I can see a lot of people, including myself, reluctant to spend $7 million on a byelection because the mayor did something stupid and foolish.”

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

And why do you say this is good? We may get some sort of Miller clone as mayor.

JLM

No Party Affiliation

#11

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by IdRatherBeSkiing

Already posted.

And why do you say this is good? We may get some sort of Miller clone as mayor.

I tried to cancel this thread after finding SLM beat me to it!

mentalfloss

+2

#12

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

A conservative with a stubborn sense of entitlement.. I thought that was only for the Leeberals and Dipsters.

Locutus

#13

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

*merged*

DaSleeper

#14

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

It would be something if he decided to run again....and won

Locutus

+1

#15

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by DaSleeper

It would be something if he decided to run again....and won

The left would have a collective stroke.

IdRatherBeSkiing

#16

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by DaSleeper

It would be something if he decided to run again....and won

Isn't he required to wait 7 years?

Goober

Free Thinker

+2

#17

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by mentalfloss

A conservative with a stubborn sense of entitlement.. I thought that was only for the Leeberals and Dipsters.

MF- You are indeed correct- it is highly unusual for a Conservative to have that sense of Lib – Dipper entitlement. I have heard of a couple in the past few years- under a dozen or so.
From what I understand the root causes rest in Fords late teen years when he had socialist tendencies. Some scars never heal. On the inside that is.

mentalfloss

#18

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by Goober

MF- You are indeed correct- it is highly unusual for a Conservative to have that sense of Lib – Dipper entitlement. I have heard of a couple in the past few years- under a dozen or so.
From what I understand the root causes rest in Fords late teen years when he had socialist tendencies. Some scars never heal. On the inside that is.

If by "socialist tendencies" you mean attending pep rallies, then sure.

Goober

Free Thinker

+1

#19

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by mentalfloss

If by "socialist tendencies" you mean attending pep rallies, then sure.

I was thinking of Beer & Toga.

JLM

No Party Affiliation

#20

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by IdRatherBeSkiing

Already posted.

And why do you say this is good? We may get some sort of Miller clone as mayor.

You want that "lean and hungry look"............cheaper to maintain them! -

Goober

Free Thinker

#21

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by JLM

You want that "lean and hungry look"............cheaper to maintain them! -

The appeals could drag out to the Ont SC or even the SCoC- But Ford screwed the pooch- He knew the rules and got caught-

The next election date is 2014 - and he was not banned from running for office.

IdRatherBeSkiing

#22

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by Goober

The appeals could drag out to the Ont SC or even the SCoC- But Ford screwed the pooch- He knew the rules and got caught-

The next election date is 2014 - and he was not banned from running for office.

I thought if he was removed from office, it would carry a 7 year ban from public service?

Goober

Free Thinker

#23

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by IdRatherBeSkiing

I thought if he was removed from office, it would carry a 7 year ban from public service?

The Judge could impose a ban- but that would have been overkill in this case. Overturning an elected official-removal from office is not done on a whim. But he broke the law- one he should have known after so many years in office.

Ford has been the author of most of his problems.

If the appeals drag out- and they could expect him to run and he could win. TO will not entertain another Miller and taxes thru the roof.

Just the Facts

Free Thinker

+1

#24

Re: Ford finds out sometimes good SH*T does happen!

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by Goober

The appeals could drag out to the Ont SC or even the SCoC- But Ford screwed the pooch- He knew the rules and got caught-

The next election date is 2014 - and he was not banned from running for office.

I'm pretty sure I read that the Judge said he didn't know the rules and got caught. Should have had better legal advice, willful blindness etc. etc., which is why he didn't get the 7 years. He can run again if he wants. For that reason you can bet council won't call an election, which I believe is an option for them. Pussies.

DaSleeper

+1

#25

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by IdRatherBeSkiing

Isn't he required to wait 7 years?

Not from what I heard on the news to-day??????
It was about half and half on that survey ...those who said good riddance and those who would vote for him.

Spade

Free Thinker

+1

#26

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Toronto won the Grey Cup and lost its mayor. On balance, just another day.
PS
Owned a Ford once; was glad to get rid of it!

Locutus

#27

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Mayor Ford’s removal arose from bad law, even judge agrees | canada.com
Excerpt from the Judge's ruling:
So, Toronto Mayor Rob Ford has been given the boot from office because an opportunistic citizen hired a smart and politically savvy lawyer who found a club of an arcane statute with which to tie the hands of a judge who was willing to play ball.
That’s the short and dirty version of the bombshell that has dropped.There was “absolutely no issue of corruption or pecuniary gain” on Ford’s part, Ontario Superior Court Judge Charles Hackland wrote in a decision released Monday.
In other words, this isn’t analogous to the cases involving other Canadian mayors where the allegations are about corruption or the countenancing of corruption — Joe Fontana, of London, Ont., who is facing fraud charges, and refuses to step down; Laval’s Gilles Vaillancourt, who quit earlier this month after a witness at Quebec’s corruption inquiry testified the mayor took kickbacks on all construction contracts; Montreal’s Gerald Tremblay, who resigned Nov. 6 amid accusations he had turned a blind eye to the corruption that was purportedly all around him.To quote Judge Hackland again: Mayor Ford’s case, by comparison, “involved a modest amount of money which he endeavoured to raise for a legitimate charity [his football foundation], which is administered at arm’s length through the Community Foundation of Toronto.”
Furthermore, as the judge also noted, when Ford insisted on speaking to the original motion at city council — the integrity commissioner Janet Leiper had suggested council ask him to repay the $3,150 given to the foundation by donors he’d approached using city letterhead — he was trying to clear the air “in circumstances where many informed commentators would contend that the principles of procedural fairness…should have allowed him to speak (although not to vote).”
The Mayor did, notoriously, vote for a motion that rescinded the order to repay.
As the judge said, his speaking and voting “was far from the most serious breach,” but removal is mandatory unless the breach was inadvertent or by reason of an error in judgment.
Ford’s own testimony at trial made it clear it wasn’t inadvertent (he said he came to that meeting with the intention of speaking, on principle if you like) or an error in judgment (or that if it was, it was his fault for either not knowing or ignoring the rules). Besides, the judge said, Ford showed “a stubborn sense of entitlement [concerning his football foundation] and a dismissive and confrontational attitude” to the integrity boss and council’s code of conduct.The mandatory removal required — under Section 10.1 of the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act — makes the statute an ***, as the judge himself acknowledged.

The underlined explains it all............

CDNBear

+1

#29

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Irrelevant. Ford was removed, that makes so many 'left leaning' citiots happy.

DaSleeper

+2

#30

Re: Judge orders Toronto Mayor Rob Ford out of office

Nov 26th, 2012

Quote: Originally Posted by CDNBear

Irrelevant. Ford was removed, that makes so many 'left leaning' citiots happy.

I'm almost willing to bet that the city council, will not call an election, choosing to appoint instead, because Ford said he was gonna run again, and they would be scared to have him win again....